Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the care economy has undergone a significant transformation through rapid digitalisation, creating new economic and social opportunities for women.

About Care Economy

• As per the UN Women, the care economy entails the production and consumption of goods and services necessary for the physical, social, mental and emotional well-being of care-dependent groups, such as children, the elderly, the ill and people with disabilities, as well as healthy, prime working-age adults.
• It includes both:
  • Paid care work: Performed by nurses, domestic workers, educators, etc.
  • Unpaid care work: Tasks like cooking, cleaning, and caring for children and the elderly, often performed at home.
• A large share of care works—both paid and unpaid—is performed by women. However, it remains largely unrecognized and undervalued, as it is typically excluded from GDP calculations and economic policymaking.
  • Women, on average, undertake approximately three times more unpaid care work than men. In India, they do nearly eight times more.
• The digital care economy reimagines conventional models of caregiving by integrating them with apps, online marketplaces, care management software, and remote monitoring. 

How digitalisation of care economy can benefit women?

• Economic Growth: As per United Nations data, investment in care infrastructure and services could create 300 million jobs by 2035, with 70–90% of these jobs expected to benefit women.
  • For example, Urban Company, which provides instant domestic services like cooking and cleaning at home, is one of India’s largest employers of female gig workers.
• Addressing Gender Disparities: Digitalisation of care economy can lead to increased flexibility and autonomy (on demand service), higher and more stable income (digital transactions), convenience and learning opportunities (work from home), thus, empowering women with new skills and career development prospects.
• Enhancing Access and Efficiency: For instance, in India, platforms for childcare like Klay and Broomees offer on-demand babysitting services, and others like Khyaal and Goodfellows offer on-demand assistance for elder care

Conclusion

Digitalization of the care economy can empower women and formalise care work, but challenges like digital gaps, social security, and bias must be addressed through a gender-responsive, rights-based approach for inclusive growth.

Office of the Registrar General (Ministry of Home Affairs) released Special Bulletin on MMR in India 2019-21

• MMR is the number of maternal deaths per 1,00,000 live births in a given time.
  • India has committed to the UN target for Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) for MMR at 70 by 2030. 

Key Highlights

• India’s MMR dropped to 93 (from 103 in 2017–19).
• Best-Performing States: Kerala (MMR 20), Telangana (45), Tamil Nadu (49), etc. 
• Poor Performance by Empowered Action Group (EAG) States: Madhya Pradesh (175), Assam (167) and UP (151) still report high MMR.

The President of India launched initiatives for senior citizens at the 'Ageing with Dignity - Initiatives for the Welfare of Senior Citizens' event.

Initiatives launched

• Senior Citizen Welfare Portal: A digital platform for elderly citizens, providing easy access to government schemes, healthcare benefits, and welfare services.
• Senior Citizen Homes: Supported under the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment’s programme aligned with the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens (MWPSC) Act.
• MoU with Brahma Kumaris: Focuses on promoting emotional balance, mindfulness, and intergenerational bonding.

Kozhikode city has been honoured with a membership in the WHO’s GNAFCC.

About GNAFCC

• Established: 2010 
• Members: 1300 members from 51 countries.
• Aim: To connect cities, communities and organizations worldwide with the common vision of making their communities great places to grow older in.
• Objectives:
  • Inspire change by showing what can be done and how.
  • Connect cities and communities worldwide to facilitate the exchange of information, knowledge and experience.
  • Support cities and communities to find appropriate innovative and evidence-based solutions.

GRID 2025 was released by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC).

• Internal Displacement (ID) refers to the forced movement of people within their country while Internally Displaced People (IDP) are people forced to flee their homes due to conflict, violence, or disasters without crossing International borders. 

Key Findings

• Internally displaced people (IDPs) at the end of 2024: 83.4million (73.5 million due to conflict and violence and 9.8 million due to disasters).
  • 25% of all disaster displacements globally were reported in the United States.
  • India: Internal displacements by conflict and violence (1,700) and Internal displacements by disasters (5.4 millions).